Bronze vessel from Shaanxi bears the first record of China's name

Do you know the origin of China’s two-character name “Zhongguo”? A bronze wine container known as the zun vessel of He dating to the Western Zhou Dynasty (c.11th century-771 BC) records the first appearance of the two characters.

The vessel was named after its owner – aristocrat He. It was a trumpet-like vessel with four decorative ridges and various cast patterns. There is a 122-character inscription on its base, among which the four characters in “zhaizizhongguo” mean “living in the central area of the world”. It indicates that the concept of “zhongguo” has emerged more than 3,000 years ago.

The object was unearthed from Jiacun town in Baoji city, Shaanxi province in 1963. Now it is in the collection of the Baoji Bronze Ware Museum.